Sorry to ask a dumb question.

I see a lot of posts from people who have ordered things from Aston Bits, etc. I am based in the US.

Can someone tell me how customs works when ordering parts from places like Aston Bits? I know import duties are on me - but I am curious how that is handled.

Any insight would be appreciated.

Randy
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i recently bought a couple of front wheels from an online outfit near london. it was as simple as buying something online from walmart. the items do go through customs, but its transparent, no extra fees have ever been involved, and i've bought stuff (not necessarily for my aston) from all over the world...england, france, italy, germany, latvia, china, japan, thailand, india, canada, mexico, czech, ukraine. it may or may not take longer to deliver than if bought from a domestic online retailer, but not necessarily.

 

I bought a lot of parts from ECPS located in Poland. I used transferwire to convert GBP to USD and it was a simple bank transfer. It took about a month to ship and clear customs. I had to provide FedEx extra information as it sat in customs and then they released it. I had an additional 34.00 to pay once released (due to some import taxes trump put on certain countries....IDK thats what the FedEx guy told me)

 

Some companies include the duties in the sales invoice. Sometimes you will get a bill from the shipping company. Aston Martin bits is one that I’ve gotten a bill from either DHL or UPS Scuderia lists it and you pay upfront no surprises. I buy Bentley and Rolls Royce parts from a company in England. I’ve had UPS hold parts until I’ve paid the duties.

 

Thanks for the replies everyone. Sounds like the shipper will contact me about any duties. Aston Martin Bits says right on the site that they don't deal with that and that the buyer is responsible. I wasn't sure how that piece of it was handled.

I have ordered things from overseas before but it has all been duty free. This is the first time something might be subject to import fees so just making sure I know what I am getting in to.

Thaks again for the info!

Randy

 

Yes if there are any duties, Fedex or whom ever is the shipper will contact you. You just pay them online. It depends on the value, inexpensive items don't require any duty, I don't know the cut off value.

 

I order all sorts of stuff from foreign countries including parts for an Aston. Use a credit card with no foreign transaction fee. I've rarely ever had to pay any additional fees. I did import furniture from China about 15 years ago. In that case I needed an agent to receive it and there were some fees, but I knew the cost ahead of time and agent handled the paperwork.

You'll be all set for what you order from Aston Bits or they should tell you if there is additional duty to be paid. You can look it up online if there is going to be.

 

It depends on who the shipper is, and how it's valued. FedEx and UPS you're going to pay brokerage and duty on anything that isn't exempt [antiques, etc] DHL or EMS [mail], you'll never pay duty. It's a hole in the system. And then you'll only pay on what it's valued at. I won't say the firm but ordered from Canada and they valued the
the $4000 package at $100. I think the UPS duty bill was $20 instead of $80 brokerage and $400 duty.

 

I order parts from Aston bits regularly, the last load which included brake rotors was here in New Zealand in 4 days!! amazing speed! Sorry I don't know about the the customs side for he US, but be assured that Aston bits are super fast at their end.

 

My chin spoiler just broke, heard the end flapping on the ground. Went online to see how much this $50 part is going to cost, yup, $490 plus shipping, and had to be ordered. Bits, in stock, $250, $80 for Fredex so I'll pay duty but it won't be bad.